Microsoft guilty of abusing its monopoly on market

An EU court has found Microsoft guilty of abusing its Windows monopoly to exclude competitors in the software market. The company will have to pay a fine of more than $US 600 MLN and disclose more information about the Windows operating system to other so

Microsoft limited consumer choice by tying its branded applications such as Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player to Windows while refusing to reveal its source code.

That prevents rival software makers from creating products that can work smoothly with Windows.

The Court has confirmed that Microsoft can no longer prevent the market from functioning properly. The Court said computer users are entitled to a choice, allowing them to benefit from more innovative products and more competitive prices.

The European Competition Commissioner wants to see a significant drop in the market share of Microsoft.

Meanwhile, in Russia, Microsoft is boosting its presence on the market.

The company doubled its revenues last year mainly through its Windows products.

Unlike the EU, Microsoft in Russia faces stiff competition from pirates. However, sales of unlicensed software are falling. This year half of new PCs were sold with licensed software – down from 80 percent last year.

But if piracy continues to decline and Microsoft strengthens its already dominant presence, it’s likely to be only a matter of time before Russian regulators turn their attention to the software giant.